Cloning and Transgenics
Transgenic farm animals are produced when you introduce a different DNA strand into the DNA of the animal via the embryo in the implantation stage. The DNA is then present in all the tissue resulting in a different phenotype in the animal.
Transgenetics has many applications in the agricultural industry
1) Selective breeding can be replaced to produce animals which have the desired trains without the disadvantages of selective breeding. This is a more efficient way of producing animals with desired traits without slaughtering offspring which don’t have the desired traits.
2) Better quality production. For example a transgenetic cow can produce more milk with little or no lactose which can be advantageous to people with lactose intolerance. There will be no need for growth hormones which was usually used to increase efficiency but the hormone may have remained in the meat after slaughter.
3) Disease resistant animals could be produced such as TB free cows. This will save millions in culling cows and culling badgers, (Wheeler, No Date).
Trangenetics and cloning has its disadvantages. Cloning and transgenetics has ethical implications such as should we play god and dismiss evolution by choosing the traits instead of letting chance and nature take its course? This could be a problem for further mutations and evolution. Laboratory animal welfare is another problem. Knockout mice are a good example. Knockout mice have very poor life quality as scientists experiment them with fatal disease to find cures and this may breach the five freedoms, (ActionBioscience, 2010).
Transgenetics has many applications in the agricultural industry
1) Selective breeding can be replaced to produce animals which have the desired trains without the disadvantages of selective breeding. This is a more efficient way of producing animals with desired traits without slaughtering offspring which don’t have the desired traits.
2) Better quality production. For example a transgenetic cow can produce more milk with little or no lactose which can be advantageous to people with lactose intolerance. There will be no need for growth hormones which was usually used to increase efficiency but the hormone may have remained in the meat after slaughter.
3) Disease resistant animals could be produced such as TB free cows. This will save millions in culling cows and culling badgers, (Wheeler, No Date).
Trangenetics and cloning has its disadvantages. Cloning and transgenetics has ethical implications such as should we play god and dismiss evolution by choosing the traits instead of letting chance and nature take its course? This could be a problem for further mutations and evolution. Laboratory animal welfare is another problem. Knockout mice are a good example. Knockout mice have very poor life quality as scientists experiment them with fatal disease to find cures and this may breach the five freedoms, (ActionBioscience, 2010).